Have you ever tried to explain the Evangelical Alliance to someone else? This was my challenge when I started working here. I was often asked, where do you work again? And what do they do? It was not a communications failure or a complaint, by the way; it was just difficult to communicate the sheer breadth of our work across the church and the public square in a few sentences.

I’m the kind of person who likes to understand the big picture. I need to know where I’m coming from in order to plot where I’m going. So just a few weeks into my new job, still learning names and faces, I picked up a dusty copy of One Body in Christ: The History and Significance of the Evangelical Alliance, which traces the organisation from its foundation in 1846 up to 2001. Turning the pages, I quickly realised that working here would be a rare and wonderful privilege.

One of the moments in the Evangelical Alliance’s history that stood out to me most was when we appointed a ​‘foreign secretary’, Herman Schmettou, during the 1860s. This was part of a focus by the then executive council of the Evangelical Alliance to ​“draft memorials and send deputations to numerous governments, in order to secure religious freedom not only for evangelicals but also for Roman Catholics, Nestorians, Jews and others”.

I just love the selfless audacity and vision of a charity that appointed their own in-house diplomat for religious freedom and commissioned them to go to other governments. I love how this ambassador was sent to secure and protect the freedoms of many who did not even believe in the gospel from which they were benefiting. In an age where it is tempting to retreat or become fundamentalist, to play at a culture war instead of entering spiritual battle, this story has deeply shaped how I see our work. Today we remain committed to gospel distinctiveness as we bless and protect others beyond our membership and even our faith.

Sponsored
"I love the mix of boldness and humility within this organisation, going out on the road to listen and to envision renewed people and places right across the UK."

Fast-forward from the 1860s to the 1990s. In the whirlwind year when Tony Blair landed in Downing Street under New Labour, the now late Rev Dr Joel Edwards CBE took on the leadership of the Evangelical Alliance. Soon after, he embarked on a 28-town tour introducing a new ​‘seizing the moment’ manifesto. This ​“covered a wide spectrum of concerns, from more effective evangelism and preaching to the promotion of biblical morality and…a serious re-commitment to social transformation”. Again, I love the mix of boldness and humility within this organisation, going out on the road to listen and to envision renewed people and places right across the UK. Today we remain committed to unity and voice as we connect grassroots churches and government chambers.

"We remain committed to unity and voice as we connect grassroots churches and government chambers."

And today our rich legacy continues to shape and inspire our work. Our member churches range from the old Anglican congregation in Dorset to the new plant in Aberdeen. Reformed, Anabaptist, charismatic — all uniting together to make Jesus known. Our member organisations serve children and young people, families, those in the care system, the hungry and homeless, trafficked and abused, the least and the lost. Our individual members and donors are people just like you, partners with us, gifting us with the prayers and financial support which make it all possible.

Altogether, an amazing alliance of sisters and brothers in Christ, proclaiming, demonstrating and embodying the gospel across time and place.

I’ve shared just two stories out of 175 years spanning monarchs and prime ministers, revivals and wars, and arguably the greatest technological and cultural revolutions in human history. We have birthed new organisations and campaigns, hosted national prayer days and discreet tables for important conversations. We’ve made friends and we’ve made apologies as we continue to listen, learn and lead. At times we have been prophetic; all the time God has been good and faithful.

Right now, we face huge challenges and opportunities which will require great faith and wisdom, compassion and conviction. As we look to the future, I can only pray that we will continue to be inspired by our past.

This year is my tenth working for the Evangelical Alliance — just a fraction of our existence — and to be honest, I still struggle to communicate who we are in a few sentences. Given all that has gone before, I wouldn’t want it any other way.

"Altogether, an amazing alliance of sisters and brothers in Christ, proclaiming, demonstrating and embodying the gospel across time and place."

Become a member today

You will join thousands of churches, organisations and individuals when you become a member of the Evangelical Alliance. Working across the UK, with offices in London, Cardiff, Glasgow and Belfast, we are an alliance dedicated to sharing fresh ideas, celebrating best practice and catalysing innovation through the country’s evangelical community and beyond – all because we know that together we can achieve much more than we can ever achieve alone. There are three types of membership: individual, church, organisation. Find out which suits you best and become a member today.

This article appears on page 28 of our celebratory edition of idea magazine, as ​‘Because we see where we’re going when we know where we’ve come from’.